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The federal administration of Switzerland consists of seven federal departments and the Federal Chancellery. The departments are roughly equivalent to the ministries of other states, but their scope is generally broader. Each department consists of several federal offices, which are headed by a director. The smaller Federal Chancellery, headed by the Federal Chancellor, operates as an eighth department in most respects. The administration is directed, in its entirety, by the Swiss Federal Council. Each member of the council is also, in his or her individual capacity, the head of one of the seven departments. The Federal Council has the sole authority to decide on the size and composition of the departments, and to make all executive decisions that are not delegated by law to an individual department, or to the Chancellery. The Council also decides which department its members are appointed to lead, although it is customary that Councillors choose their preferred department in order of seniority.
List of federal departments
| Federal department | Current Federal Councillor |
|---|---|
| Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications | Moritz Leuenberger (SPS |
| Federal Department of Home Affairs | Pascal Couchepin (FDP President of the Confederation in 2008 |
| Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports | Samuel Schmid (SVP) |
| Federal Department of Foreign Affairs | Micheline Calmy-Rey (SPS) |
| Federal Department of Justice and Police | Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf (SVP) |
| Federal Department of Finance | Hans-Rudolf Merz (FDP) Vice-President in 2008 |
| Federal Department of Economic Affairs | Doris Leuthard (CVP) |
Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications
- 1848-1859: Department of Posts and Construction
- 1860-1872: Department of Posts
- 1873-1878: Department of Posts and Telegraph
- 1879-1962: Department of Posts and Railways
- 1963-1978: Department of Transport, Communications and Energy
- 1979-1997: Federal Department of Transport, Communications and Energy
- Since 1998: Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications
Federal Department of Home Affairs
The official name of the department in all three of Switzerland's official languages translates literally as Federal Department of the Interior. However, the Swiss Government uses the conventional translation Federal Department of Home Affairs
Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports
Federal Department of Foreign Affairs
The department was known as the "Political Department" from 1848 to 1979, and was often heade by the President of the Confederation.
Federal Department of Justice and Police
The member of the Swiss Federal Council that heads this department is effectively the Swiss minister of justice. Until 1979, the department was called "Department of Justice and Police".
Federal Department of Finance
Initially, in 1848, the department was called "Department of Finance", then, from 1873 "Department of Finance and Customs", until it received its present designation in 1978.
Federal Department of Economic Affairs
- 1848-1872: Department of Trade and Customs
- 1873-1878: Department of Railway and Trade
- 1879-1887: Department of Trade and Agriculture
- 1888-1895: Department of Industry and Agriculture
- 1896-1914: Department of Trade, Industry and Agriculture
- 1915-1978: Department of Economic Affairs
- Since 1979: Federal Department of Economic Affairs
